The 50 Weirdest Movies Ever Made

Editor’s note: This post was originally published in September 2014. We’ve selected it as one of the posts we’re republishing for our 10th anniversary celebrations in May 2017.

A Lynchian renaissance is happening at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, where David Lynch studied painting before his surreal entry into filmmaking with 1977’s Eraserhead. The school is the site of Lynch’s first major museum exhibition in the United States. It was there that he created several short films to animate his artworks, planting the early seeds for Eraserhead — starring Jack Nance as a young father crippled by the anxiety of fatherhood. A mutant baby, industrial cityscape, and shadowy apartment building leave an indelible mark on the viewer. Criterion is re-releasing Eraserhead on Blu-ray September 16. In honor of Lynch and his surreal universe, we’re celebrating 50 other weird works on film — many that rival Lynch’s strange aesthetic.

Rabbits

“I don’t know what the rabbits will do. But any number of things could happen.” —David Lynch on his avant-garde short Rabbits, full of expressionist shadows, eerie lighting, and a disturbing laugh track.